Credit authorization terminals were originally developed to help credit card issuers avoid losses resulting from transactions approved for invalid credit cards. Before electronic authorization was used, merchants could only resort to "hot lists" that contained the numbers of lost, stolen or otherwise invalid cards. Unfortunately, these lists were often outdated and the process time-consuming for the clerk. As charge-back losses topped the million dollar mark, card issuers developed a system by which merchants could call a number at a processing center to verify transactions on the customer's card. The voice authorization system, which is still used by many merchants, is expensive and time-consuming.
The voice authorization system was supplemented in the late '70s by the current electronic credit authorization systems. Credit authorization terminals read the data encoded on the magnetic strips on the back of credit cards and automatically dial the processing center over telephone lines. Within seconds the host computer can return an authorization number over the same phone line. However, such terminals generally do not include credit card receipt imprinters, and those that do include card readers with movable read heads, which have a large number of moving parts and are therefore difficult and relatively expensive to maintain.
Some terminals are now in use which have the added capability of automatically effecting debits to a user's bank account, when the customer uses a card known as a debit card. These terminals, which may be referred to as debit transfer terminals, suffer the same lacks as credit authorization terminals; namely, they do not include receipt imprinters and fixed head card readers.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a unitary debit transfer and verification terminal with printing mechanism, to reduce equipment size, increase convenience, and reduce errors in transferring authorization information onto sales receipts.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a card reader system adaptable to such a terminal, and also enhancing the convenience and versatility of card reading terminals generally.
It is yet another object of this invention to provide such a terminal which is particularly convenient and durable, and readily adaptable to the varying requirements of merchants in the retail field.